The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education in Louisiana has approved a plan that should help Louisiana's youngest students get a better start in their educational careers.

The Child Care Assistance Program which once provided daycare and instruction for 40-thousand kids in the state has seen that number drop significantly. The current enrollment in the program is down to 15-thousand. It is hoped an influx of money from the federal government will allow more children to participate.

Louisiana State Superintendent of Education John White told the Louisiana Radio Network that the approval of $10-million dollars in subsidies should help make the program more attainable for impoverished families in the state. White says the money and the program will aid Louisiana citizens in two ways,

More families will have childcare and go to work, and second, we’ll be able to pay our childcare teachers more. So those are both good things.

It is hoped that the more children that are exposed to organized daycare will foster good learning habits in the future. White said the additional money will allow the annual subsidy of $1,700 per child to be increased to $4,000 per child. This will give more parents more options on balancing the need for childcare and the ability to work.

 

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